http://www.guardianunlimited.co.uk/drugs/Story/0,2763,510922,00.html
Paul Kelso
Police seized cannabis with a street
value of £50,000 yesterday from a health food shop openly selling
it.
Tony's Hemp Corner in King's Cross,
London, which has sold cannabis for medical use to more than 250 people
with multiple sclerosis, cancer and Aids for several years, was raided
by officers from Islington police station.
Around 40 plants and cannabis resin
were seized. The proprieter, Tony Taylor, was taken to the station for
questioning.
Chris Sanders, who saw the raid,
described it as "friendly and relaxed".
"The police didn't come busting their
way in or anything, it was very softly softly," he said. "The health food
shop downstairs was still open."
Mr Sanders, a member of the Cannabis
Coalition, added: "The police will find plenty of evidence of possession
with intent to supply because Tony was completely open about what he was
doing. If he is charged it will be a very important test of the courts'
resolve to prosecute people sup plying cannabis on humane grounds."
Mr Taylor's customers have to fill
in a form, undergo a 20-minute interview and provide him with a doctor's
letter.
Last Saturday, Mr Taylor told the
Guardian that his trade was tolerated by local authorities; in King's Cross,
police had the sex and cocaine trades to worry about, he said.
Friday June 22, 2001
The Guardian